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Spy in the sky

A number of passenger airlines will soon be offering customers airborne internet services but computer experts are advising them to plug all possible security gaps.

Boeing, Airbus and a third company AirTV, have all announced in-flight internet services to coincide with the Paris air show, which ends on 24 June.

The companies are making efforts to ensure that the network is protected from outside cyber attack, but security experts say that passengers inside the plane could still be at risk.

There are ways to configure an on-board network to prevent users connecting to one others laptops, but neither aircraft manufacturer has yet confirmed whether they plan to use such technology.

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Boeing and Airbus say that customers will connect their computers to a local area network (LAN) aboard each plane. They will then receive an internet services through a satellite connection to the aircraft. Both companies say that connections to planes will be encrypted to prevent eavesdropping and will be protected with firewall technology.

They have not, however, said how users inside the plane will be protected from one another. The situation may not be any more risky than on an ordinary public network, but experts say there will be more of an incentive to target business travellers.

“You’re going to get a lot of middle management using the system who normally carry confidential information,” says Gunter Ollman, a consultant for Internet Security Systems. “Depending on what programs they are running, they may be vulnerable.”

Ollman says that, if the network is set up in a conventional way, a user with the right tools and expertise could locate other computers connected to the network and possibly even break into their system.

“It’s certainly a possibility,” says Neil Barrett, technical director of Information Risk Management. Barrett says that a user might also be able to eavesdrop – or “sniff” – messages sent by other passengers. He says that if the system were not set up with security in mind, extra precautions should be used, such as a personal firewall. This can block unwanted connections to a user’s computer.

Cross-network hacking

Ways of improving the security of the on-board network include using the latest network hardware, which allows each user to be allocated their own “virtual LAN”. This reduces the risk of cross-network hacking.

Another approach is to place a proxy server between each user and the main server, in order to restrict their activities. But neither Boeing nor Airbus has said what techniques they plan to use. Each stress that technical details of their services have yet to been finalised.

Terrance Scott, director of media relations for Boeing’s internet service Connexion, says that security experts are still evaluating ways to ensure that internet users are secure while aboard. The internet service for Airbus is being provided by Seattle-based satellite communications company Tenzing. Its executive vice-president John Wade says that security could be increased as the service is rolled out across different airlines.

Aerial surfing

Boeing’s Connexion will supply a total of five megabits per second to each plane and at least 56 kilobits per second to each customer. The service is to be provided on United, Delta, American Airlines and Lufthansa from 2002.

Airbus says it can offer internet on some planes immediately thanks to its acquisition of a 30 per cent stake in Tenzing. Initially passengers on Cathy Pacific Airways, Singapore Airlines and Virgin Atlantic Airlines will only be able to receive enough data to read and send email. However, Tenzing says in 2002 the connection to the plane will be up to eight megabits per second, which would allow internet surfing.

The Airbus-Tenzing service will offer three connection options, dial-up, through in-flight telephony, an onboard LAN or a wireless network.

AirTV, a Canadian company, will announce details of an in-flight live television and internet service that it expects to debut in 2004 on Wednesday.